STEUBENVILLE, Ohio - Jobs related to the shale boom were among the topics when Ohio Governor John Kasich delivered his State of the State address on Tuesday.
In an unprecedented move, the governor took his State of the State speech on the road.
Wells Academy in Steubenville, the state's highest testing public elementary schoo,l served as the backdrop for the address.
But success stories of the Mahoning Valley also had a starring role in his speech, including V&M's expansion and GM Lordstown's commitment to a world class product.
Governor Kasich said, "Chevy Cruze baby, it's selling and it's working!"
The Republican governor says in the past year Ohio became the number one job creator in the mid west, and the Youngstown area's unemployment rate is finally on the upswing. He said, "The unemployment rate in Youngstown has gone from 11.5% to 8.3% since last year. The Mahoning Valley's alive again and they deserve it."
While the Governor delivered his speech inside, more than 100 protesters stood outside. They traveled from Youngstown, Cleveland and Columbus saying they're disgusted with his leadership.
Mahoning Valley lawmaker and Democrat Bob Hagan told the crowd he helped organize, "All we want to do is make sure we are safe in our homes and that our Valley is protected, instead of allowing people from Pennsylvania to ship 60% of their toxic chemicals in to Ohio."
But in response to the shale drilling and brine injection wells, the governor told the audience that while he is excited about the prospect of jobs and economic growth when it comes to shale drilling, we must take our time to ensure that laws are in place to protect the public and the environment.
Democrat Ron Gerberry says it's one thing he can agree on with the governor, "He talked about responsible legislation to deal with the issues confronting us as we proceed with the drilling of wells in the state of Ohio. I don't think they're going to be blocked, I don't think they're going to be stopped, but I think that he wants to do it the right way."
But Senator Joe Schiavoni feels the governor delivered a feel good speech without solutions to the state's problems. "He kind of gave a highlight of all the real good things going on, and all the negative things he inherited. But he never really laid out what he wanted to do."
Republican lawmakers say it's up to all of the state officials to come together to find those solutions and present them to the governor.
